The Champions League quarter-final against Paris Saint-Germain is going to become an even trickier game for Bayern Munich. The German Champions received a big blow ahead of the first leg on Wednesday as Serge Gnabry was ruled out due to coronavirus.
Die Roten confirmed on Tuesday that Gnabry is quarantined at home after being tested positive for the coronavirus. The German winger might end up missing three games across all competitions. Bayern can live without him in the Bundesliga, but Gnabry was going to play a crucial role in the Champions League game.
Rekordmeister received the worst possible news last week when Robert Lewandowski was ruled out for four weeks. The Polish striker returned to Sabner Strasse last Sunday with a ligament injury. Polish FA had insisted that injury issues were not serious and he could miss seven to ten days. However, the further prognosis confirmed that the injury was much more serious and will need at least four weeks to recover.
Gnabry was expected to fill in for Lewandowski in the number nine role. The German forward has played in this role for Germany. However, those plans are completely shelved just 24 hours before the game. Hansi Flick will have to come up with a better tactical plan to compensate for the absence of two key players.
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Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting was deployed in this position against RB Leipzig. The 32-year-old striker was decent, but the attack was not fluid as it is with Lewandowski. Choupo-Moting is an able backup option and a very good player to have on the bench. It will be intriguing to see how Flick uses him against PSG.
Another good option for Flick in the number nine role will be Thomas Muller. He has previously played in his early days at Die Roten. Moreover, Germany also used him in this position during the first half of the last decade. Muller is clever with his runs, so he will be a handful as a striker or false nine against PSG.
Rekordmeister still has a lot of quality players in the squad. However, the impact of Lewandowski in the final third is humungous. Kingsley Coman and Leroy Sane have stepped up this season on different occasions. Both of them will have to be at their best in these two games against PSG.
More than goals on Wednesday, a clean sheet should be the utmost priority for Die Roten. Considering the way this season has panned out for them, a clean sheet would be a commendable effort as Rekordmeister has been consistently conceding cheap goals. Nevertheless, victory over PSG this season would be even more remarkable considering the circumstances.